BOROBUDUR AUCTION: Southeast Asian Contemporary
Public viewing dates: 15 & 16 May 2008, 11 am – 8pm
Auction: Saturday, 17 May 2008, starting at 10 am
Venue: Suntec Singapore, International Convention & Exhibition Centre

2007 saw a new wave of leading regional contemporary artists emerge from the shadows of their predecessors on the international auction scene. Where modern masters such as Affandi, Hendra Gunawan, Thawan Duchanee, Latiff Mohidin and Arturo Luz once entirely dominated the field, now familiar names such as Putu Sutawijaya, Handiwirman, Ahmad Zakii Anwar, Natee Utarit, I Nyoman Masriadi and Nona Garcia, have captured the limelight, earning their place as the standard bearers of their generation.

Last year’s debut Southeast Asian Contemporary auction, held by Borobudur Auction House in October, was the first ever dedicated sale of its kind. It achieved astounding results with the sale of 100 lots out of a total of 108 lots, representing a 92.5% success rate. Its total sold value of SGD 2,410,400 is double of its high estimate for the entire sale. An encouraging feature of the sale was the success of the more ‘challenging works’ in the auction, in media such as photography and installation.

Moreover, it demonstrated that demographics of collectors have changed. Indonesian buyers no longer dominate the market as they used to. New buyers came from the UK, Europe, China, Taiwan, Philippines, and Malaysia with Singaporean collectors making a strong and adventurous showing.

Following the resounding success of the first Southeast Asian Contemporary Art auction, Borobudur Auction House is pleased to present a second auction in this category in Singapore this coming 17 May 2008.

The spring auction sees leading regional gallery Valentine Willie Fine Art (VWFA) returning to advise on the sale, promising a tighter, but equally diverse, selection of works from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The catalogue will continue to expand on important works by Southeast Asian artists, providing an informed survey of the extraordinary range of art practice in the region to international and Asian collectors.

The diversity and range of intelligent and successful practices across traditional and new media attest to the regional pool of creative talent, as artists take part in the global phenomenon of contemporary art, made possible by technological leaps that have enabled new channels for exchange and communication. At the same time, artists are exploring local traditions and histories through art, bridging the old and the new, the universal and the particular, in works that are not only visually powerful, but also insightful. This auction affirms the vibrant current already present in Southeast Asia.

On sale will be works by key artists such as Le Quang Ha (Vietnam) Jalaini Abu Hassan (Malaysia), Tang Da Wu (Singapore), Nindityo Adipurnomo (Indonesia), Moelyono (Indonesia), Gerardo Tan (Philippines), Manit Sriwanichpoom (Thailand), Vasan Sitthiket (Thailand), as well as younger emerging artists MONTRI (Thailand), Phuan Thai Meng (Malaysia), Dinh Y Nhi (Vietnam), Eko Nugroho (Indonesia), Geraldine Javier (Philippines), Angki Purbandono (Indonesia) and Yee I-Lann (Malaysia) to name just a few.